Putting the Brakes On

Labor dispute might cause bus strike

If you're one of the nearly 60,000 people who ride Greater
Cincinnati's Metro bus system every day to get to school, go to work,
buy groceries or for some other purpose, you might soon have to make
other travel plans.

The board that oversees Metro voted Feb. 1 to reject a
state fact-finder's recommendations about a labor contract with its
workers, and the union says it might go on strike.

Trustees for the Southwest Ohio Regional Transit Authority
(SORTA) voted 11-1 to reject the recommendations, calling them too
expensive and vague. The agency's contract with its 676 bus drivers,
maintenance and support employees expired a day earlier, although that
agreement remains in effect until a new deal is reached.

The SORTA board will meet in executive session Feb. 9, the
day this issue is published, presumably to craft a final offer for the
union. Under labor laws, the agency can impose a “final and best offer”;
in turn, the union may give a 10-day notice to strike.

Metro provides about 19 million passenger trips annually,
or about 57,000 to 60,000 trips daily. Also, the agency has a contract
with Cincinnati Public Schools, and provides about 7,000 trips for the
district each day.

A fact-finder with the State Employment Relations Board
(SERB) made several recommendations related to a proposed three-year
labor contract with the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 627. They
included wage increases of 2 percent annually, totaling nearly $5
million during the three-year contract's duration.

The union had sought 4 percent raises annually, while SORTA
wanted no raises in the contract's first two years, and a 2 percent
raise in the third year.

Also, SORTA said the fact-finder didn't offer enough
clarification about a dispute over its health-insurance plan and how
much employees should pay.

The union had sought no changes in its coverage; SORTA
offered three different options for employees. Under one option, the
employee's share of the total premium would increase 2 percent during
each year of the contract. Also, the agency offered a different plan and
a PPO-style plan.

“Over the past four months, Local 627 spent a significant
amount of time negotiating in good faith with SORTA in an effort to
reach a new collective bargaining agreement,” said Mark Bennett, the
union's president, in a prepared statement. “However, during bargaining
and prior to the expiration of our contract, SORTA unilaterally and
unlawfully changed our members' health insurance coverage.”

As a result, the union filed an unfair labor practice
complaint against SORTA with the state. In turn, SERB assigned a
fact-finder to mediate the dispute, in an effort to avoid litigation.
SORTA refused to participate in the mediation process, so a hearing was
held so both sides could make its case.

“Importantly, the neutral fact-finder closely reviewed and
analyzed SORTA's finances and determined that SORTA, despite its claims
to the union, was financially healthy,” Bennett said. “Furthermore, the
fact-finder determined that the transit system should not be financed
on the backs of our members by imposing cuts to employee benefits and
salaries.”

SORTA representatives reply that the lack of clarification
on the health-insurance plan could prove too costly. If the
highest-cost interpretation of the health-insurance provision was used,
the agency's cost would exceed $2.6 million in 2011 and increase to $6.3
million in 2013, a spokeswoman said.

In actuality, the fact-finder didn't make a strict
determination about SORTA's financial health, as the union claimed. But
it also provided some clarity about how to proceed with the health
coverage, unlike what SORTA officials had claimed.

“The Authority's premiums have increased by 27 percent and
the employees should not be expected to absorb the entire amount,” the
fact-finder's report stated. “(An employee) stated the Authority saved
27.08 percent of their cost when the Authority changed insurance
coverage.

“I recommend the employee will pay a percentage of their
base hourly wage rate (based upon 2080 hours)," the report continued.
"Pay 2 percent of base hourly rate in 2011 and 2012 with an increase to
2.5 percent of their base hourly rate in 2013. As to the opt-out
amounts, they are to be $350 per month for single and $550 per month for
family.”

The union is keeping all options available for how to handle the impasse.

“In view of SORTA's blatant unfair labor practices, if the
need arises, Local 627 is prepared to engage in job action to protect
its members' legal rights,” Bennett said. “While we sincerely hope that
such action will be unnecessary, until SORTA agrees to comply with law,
there may be no other alternative.”